Vladimir Guerrero Jr. cannot be stopped

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is demolishing baseballs just like Vlad the elder used to do it. Toronto’s top prospect hit a pair of bombs on Monday, one of which struck a hotel beyond the left field fence. Over Vlad Jr.’s last nine games for Double-A New Hampshire, he’s 18-for-34 with 11 runs scored and 16 RBIs.

Guerrero is simply unfair. He just turned 19 in March and he’s slashing .398/.453/.673 at an advanced level. He has 16 extra-base hits, 12 walks and 12 strikeouts in 25 games, plus he’s leading the Eastern League in batting average and RBIs. Again: He’s 19 years old. If Vlad Jr. has any weaknesses as a hitter, it’s pretty clear they will not be revealed by Double-A pitching.

The Blue Jays surely didn’t enter the season thinking Vlad would make his MLB debut in 2018, but here we are. If Guerrero keeps raking like this, they can only hold him back so long. It’s strictly a service-time issue at this point. The original Vlad made his first big league appearance at age 21; his son is likely to beat that by two full years.

With Ronald Acuna now in the majors, Guerrero has to be considered the game’s No. 1 prospect, both in fantasy and reality. Here’s hoping we see him in Toronto by mid-to-late summer.

And for those who might have missed Vlad going deep to the opposite field off a batting tee, here you go: